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Beard or arm?
Some of you might say that both of our arms were already cut off before this probe. I have to say it is an argument to consider. Remember the analogy Sokollu Mehmed…
The country of the year was the modest Uruguay
I really liked Jose Mujica. He is not after cheap heroism as Chavez was. He is working quietly and humbly. Jose Mujica is 78 years old. A former Tupamaros guerilla, he…
Double jeopardy in Turkey
I feel bad for Dr. Erdem Başçı, the governor of the Central Bank of Turkey. Just at the end of August, he surprised me by saying that the “Turkish Lira could reach 1.92…
Prospects for the Turkish economy in 2014 (4)
The pessimistic scenario might become the “baseline scenario.” And the recent shock that shook Turkey intensifies this possibility. I wrote the paragraphs below about 10…
If the Fed tapers, we have to tighten our belts
Add to this picture the political uncertainty the massive bribery and corruption probe will cause. Recently, I attended a G20 meeting in Sydney. The meeting was on the…
The massive bribery probe and the Turkish economy
If the current economic structure of Turkey were similar to that before the 2001 crisis, the economy would have shaken so badly. The probe initiated recently in Turkey…
When is the land rent illicit?
In Turgut Özal’s time, land profits were distributed to millions and it was licit and inclusive. Not anymore. The Taksim Square has professedly become a pedestrian zone.…
It’s not only inflation that is stiff
The outlook of unemployment in Turkey is same as that of inflation. The mean is stiff, and we cannot overcome it permanently. Labor force statistics for September were…
A ‘small harvest’ in Bali offers big horizons for WTO’s future
Trade ministers from 159 countries adopted a historic decision at the WTO’s (World Trade Organization) ninth Ministerial Conference held on the island of Bali in…
Mind the gap
We have a fixation in Turkey. Every now and then, we like to emphasize that Turkey belongs to Europe. If ever a foreign government, official or publication lists Turkey…
Prospects for the Turkish economy in 2014 (3)
Non-gold exports increased by 6.3 percent year-on-year in the first 10 months, about two times of that in 2012. Here is the summary of my baseline scenario concerning…
Why did civil politics fail in making a constitution?
To begin with, when addressing this failure, we should not focus on the concrete steps taken during the process. It appears that the constitution-making process…